What am I smelling?
Jul. 27th, 2006 02:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
allanaWe've just had a gas leak.
How terrifying is that?
When I first came to England I was horrified that people were having explosive gas piped into their houses like it was normal and safe, but gradually I became acclimatised and found that it seared meat so much better than electric could ever hope to (*). But all the time I was convinced that it was horrible, horrible stuff that should be restricted to laboratories.
Today I have been proven right.
On the plus side, TRANSCO responded to my tearful phonecall within five minutes as they already had someone in the area. The engineer whipped out the offending bit of kit, did loads of testing (including the hob and the boiler) and pronounced the house safe. We also have a new handle so that I can get the gas off if any further emergencies arise and I also know how to light our ancient boiler if that ever goes out.
So. The message of the day (and I feel like Man-at-Arms doing the moral at the end of an episode of He-Man) is to trust your nose, even if it's changed during pregnancy or if you have a cold. TRANSCO (or whoever is responsible for your gas supply in your country/area) don't mind coming out even if you're not 100% sure about whether it is gas you're smelling, their visit is free even if you have work done, and calling them out on a wild goose chase is a heck of a lot less stressful than having your house blow up.
I very am glad that I was at home and doubly glad that I didn't ignore or dismiss the smell. I shall now proceed to self-medicate with some chocolate or ice-cream. (Or possibly engage in some therapeutic smashing of cars. There are two faulty car alarms on the street and they are taking it in turns to go off.)
* Yes, I'm sure that there were plenty of houses with gas supplies in Scotland, but I'd never, ever encountered any. Everyone was electric in my neck of the woods.
How terrifying is that?
When I first came to England I was horrified that people were having explosive gas piped into their houses like it was normal and safe, but gradually I became acclimatised and found that it seared meat so much better than electric could ever hope to (*). But all the time I was convinced that it was horrible, horrible stuff that should be restricted to laboratories.
Today I have been proven right.
On the plus side, TRANSCO responded to my tearful phonecall within five minutes as they already had someone in the area. The engineer whipped out the offending bit of kit, did loads of testing (including the hob and the boiler) and pronounced the house safe. We also have a new handle so that I can get the gas off if any further emergencies arise and I also know how to light our ancient boiler if that ever goes out.
So. The message of the day (and I feel like Man-at-Arms doing the moral at the end of an episode of He-Man) is to trust your nose, even if it's changed during pregnancy or if you have a cold. TRANSCO (or whoever is responsible for your gas supply in your country/area) don't mind coming out even if you're not 100% sure about whether it is gas you're smelling, their visit is free even if you have work done, and calling them out on a wild goose chase is a heck of a lot less stressful than having your house blow up.
I very am glad that I was at home and doubly glad that I didn't ignore or dismiss the smell. I shall now proceed to self-medicate with some chocolate or ice-cream. (Or possibly engage in some therapeutic smashing of cars. There are two faulty car alarms on the street and they are taking it in turns to go off.)
* Yes, I'm sure that there were plenty of houses with gas supplies in Scotland, but I'd never, ever encountered any. Everyone was electric in my neck of the woods.
